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The Forgotten Step - adding Journaling to your Scrapbook

by Wayne Wargo (PenWay.org)

Scrapbooking is a great way to create something for you, family or friends. You will want to make sure that you try to use the time to produce a quality book of memories to mark past landmarks to show your friends and family all the events or experiences that they may have missed, were unaware of or couldn't share with you. Most people forget to journal in their scrapbook and it is one of the most commonly forgotten steps. The reason why journaling is so wonderful and important is so that you can remember what was going on or happened at the time so that you can reflect on those memories years later.

Begin by creating a title for each page. The pages of your journal do not have to be fancy. Think of each page as a story and then name it. Use big bold letters for the title to draw attention to it, but make sure it does not overwhelm the most important elements of the page - the pictures.

Each picture on your page should have a few words as a caption. You will want to name the people in the pictures or the places that can be seen in the background. This is because you may not be able to remember where the pictures came from or whom certain people are. Others who do not know all of your friends will also benefit from these labels. You also want to think about captions as a small element on a page and you may only want to use a caption occasionally and not put a caption on every picture.

You will also want to include text into your page design. It's best to keep this text around the same size as the smallest photograph, but of course this depends on the page layout. Many pre-made layouts will already include a space for text. Use this element of the design to record the "story" behind the pictures. Think about it in a way like you would when you look back with a friend. Like what would you say to the friend or what would the friend say to you? All of this information is readily forgotten, so it is important to jot down a few words on a piece of notebook paper and save it with your photographs if you think that you won't get the chance to create your pages right away. Time just seems to blend the years together. Very few people can remember everything they did by date, but if you include a date or time you will be able to preserve the memories.

You may forget to take your camera at an important event or not be allowed to use a camera where you are. Even if you did end up going to a place and you didn't take pictures, you can certainly still document that part of your life by using the scrapbook to remember what you saw. These pages will be mostly journaling. Use descriptive words to take the place of the photographs.

You don't have to worry if you don't have good handwriting or printing because you can use letter stickers and cutouts to help you to journalize. However, when you use your own handwriting, it just gives the journal some character. You can also use a computer to print out some journalizing elements on each page. You will want to choose some way of journaling that will allow you to scrapbook in a dramatic way and help create a wonderful album to show off your creativity and your loving memories.

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